The Bell Rings

Ruxandra Coman
It's 1995, I'm 7 years old and Bucharest smells like dumpster and hot pavement. I'm playing the Elastic Band game with the children of the block. My mom bought me a backpack with The Flintstones on it. Playtimes over, or so she said. We have a stereo and we are blasting a song that goes something like this: "the school bell shall ring again it's true, what's the little boy to do." I have no idea what the deal with this thing called "school" is, but I must supposedly enjoy it, to become someone in life. The adults say too many words. The bell has rung. I take my pen to draw a heart on the palm of my hand, which turns red because of the teacher's ruler. I don't cry anymore, I'm a big boy now.
 
Nicolae Popescu
When I ring once, but for a long time, you bring me my tea. When I ring twice, you bring me my food, on a silver platter. When I ring three times, you open the castel gate. The postman shall come, carrying letters from my sister in Englitera. He always knocks twice, he can't do more than that. The new servant, the mighty Jean, stared at the duchess squeezed in her thick, tight garments. My Lady, if I may, I have an idea: I'll bring you your tea, I'll bring you your food and I'll knock three times myself, because I can. On request, I'll digitalize it for you, so you could quit all the postman's services altogether.
 
Camil Popescu
At a time when I was immortal, at around 20 years old, and in a relationship with a brunette, just as immortal as myself, only one year younger, I put any fantasy there was into practice. Once, to some question, she answered with a long no, which sounded much like a cow's moo. At first, we burst into laughter, but 5 minutes later we were butt-naked. She swinged her hips on all fours, with a bell, she had plucked from the Christmas tree tied around her neck, and I was the bull chasing her. It all got so heated between us that we heard neither the front door open, nor her dad calling for her, nor that we were just about to become mortals.

(Translated by Diana Gabriela Radu / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year I / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)